Medical connectors

A medical connector comprising:

• a housing having:
• an outer wall;
• a first opening;
• and
• a second opening;
• a fluid pathway between the first opening and the second opening;
• a hollow projection that defines an interior cavity that forms a portion of the fluid pathway, the projection disposed inward of the outer wall to form a cavity between the projection and the outer wall;
• a valve disposed inside the projection, the valve having a closed position with an end of the valve substantially flush with an end of the projection to close the fluid pathway and an open position with the end of the valve recessed inside the projection to open the fluid pathway, wherein the valve includes a shaft that is made of a resilient material, wherein pressing on an end of the shaft causes the shaft to bend so that the end of the shaft is recessed within the projection to open the valve;
• and
• a cover disposed in the cavity between the projection and the outer wall, wherein the cover has a first configuration with the cover disposed substantially flush with the end of the valve and substantially flush with the end of the projection.

A medical connector comprising:

• a housing having:
• an outer wall;
• a first opening;
• and
• a second opening;
• a fluid pathway between the first opening and the second opening;
• a hollow projection that defines an interior cavity that forms a portion of the fluid pathway, the projection disposed inward of the outer wall to form a cavity between the projection and the outer wall;
• a valve disposed inside the projection, the valve having a closed position with an end of the valve substantially flush with an end of the projection to close the fluid pathway and an open position with the end of the valve recessed inside the projection to open the fluid pathway;
• a cover disposed in the cavity between the projection and the outer wall, wherein the cover has a first configuration with the cover disposed substantially flush with the end of the valve and substantially flush with the end of the projection;
• and
• a breakaway member that is configured to removably couple to the housing and to receive a second medical connector to establish fluid communication between the second medical connector and the fluid pathway, wherein the breakaway member is configured to disengage from the housing when a threshold amount of force pulls the breakaway member or the second medical connector away from the medical connector.

A medical connector comprising:

• a housing having:
• an outer wall;
• a first opening;
• and
• a second opening;
• a fluid pathway between the first opening and the second opening;
• a hollow projection that defines an interior cavity that forms a portion of the fluid pathway, the projection disposed inward of the outer wall to form a cavity between the projection and the outer wall;
• a valve disposed inside the projection, the valve having a closed position with an end of the valve substantially flush with an end of the projection to close the fluid pathway and an open position with the end of the valve recessed inside the projection to open the fluid pathway;
• a cover disposed in the cavity between the projection and the outer wall, wherein the cover has a first configuration with the cover disposed substantially flush with the end of the valve and substantially flush with the end of the projection, wherein the cover is configured to be pushed along an exterior of the projection when a second medical connector is coupled to the medical connector;
• and
• an activation member configured to move with the cover, wherein the activation member is configured to pull the valve to the open position.

A method of using a breakaway medical connector, the method comprising:

• accessing a first medical connector that includes a main body with a fluid pathway and a breakaway member attached to the main body;
• coupling a second medical connector to the breakaway member, wherein coupling the second medical connector to the breakaway member establishes fluid communication between the second medical connector and the fluid pathway of the main body;
• detaching the breakaway member and the second medical connector from the main body of the first medical connector by pulling the second connector away from the first connector, wherein the breakaway member remains coupled to the second medical connector after the detachment;
• and
• reattaching the breakaway member to the main body of the first medical connector without needing the use of a tool by pushing the breakaway member into the main body of the first medical connector to reestablish fluid communication between the second medical connector and the fluid pathway of the main body of the first medical connector.